Woman Dies After Losing Land to Loan Shark

Biratnagar. Shanti Devi Mahato, 55, of Mahato Tole, Biratnagar-14, has seven daughters. The mother of all seven daughters has died. The daughters' hope is broken. 11 years ago, her second daughter Soni's leg was broken, and the loan of 150,000 rupees she took for treatment became her death sentence.

The 'meter interest' on that loan pushed her into crisis. The 465,000 rupees she earned through hard work was also taken by these meter lenders. When her 10-dhur land and thatched house were also taken, she chose the path of ending her life and committed suicide.

There is silence and crying in Shanti Devi's house. 11 years ago, to fix her second daughter Soni's broken leg, she took a loan of 150,000 rupees at 5 percent interest from Ambika, also known as Amerika Kumari Rai, on October 11, 2072. Shanti Devi, who was desperate for her daughter's treatment, transferred the 10-dhur land in her name, plot number 3446, to Rai's name according to the lender's condition.

Shanti Devi had paid only 90,000 rupees in interest to Rai over time. However, instead of returning the land, Rai sold the same land to Sundari Gupta, wife of Shri Narayan Gupta of Biratnagar-14, for 150,000 rupees on June 14, 2073.

Shanti Devi became more panicked when she learned that her only property had gone into someone else's name. She started arranging money from various cooperatives and paying Narayan Gupta. During this period, she had already paid 465,000 rupees. 'We paid more than 4.5 lakh rupees in installments through hard work,' said Shanti Devi's daughter Soni, 'but even after receiving the money, Narayan did not agree to return the land, and instead filed a case against us in court, causing us trouble.'

Shanti Devi had submitted a written application to the Commission for Investigation of Loan Sharking on May 8, 2080, stating that she was being subjected to injustice. She had appealed to the state, saying, 'The lender has grabbed the land, give me justice.' But the poor woman's application remained stuck in the government drawer. Before the state machinery could hear her pain, the meter lender's threat reached her home.

Around 3 PM on June 6, Narayan Gupta, his wife Sundari, and son Aman Gupta reached Shanti Devi's house. They threatened to kill her if she did not vacate the land immediately, saying that anything could happen. Realizing that her family would be uprooted by the lender's cruel behavior, a distraught Shanti Devi committed suicide by hanging herself in her own home at 3 AM the next day, June 7. When daughter Soni saw her mother hanging from the rope, chaos erupted in the house. 'They came in the afternoon and threatened us, saying they would cut and kill us. They said anything could happen if the house and land were not vacated,' said Shanti Devi's daughter Soni. 'Then that night, Mom did that.'

Neighbor Bindu Mahato says, 'Is it justice to pay 4.5 lakh rupees for 150,000 rupees and not get the land back? Among the deceased's 7 daughters, 3 are still unmarried. Who will look after their education and future now?'

Ward Chairman Surya Narayan Mahato of Biratnagar-14 is also heartbroken by this incident. 'We told him many times not to oppress the poor. But Shri Narayan does not listen to us. Now the poor citizens have had to lose their lives,' he said.

After Shanti Devi's death, relatives and neighbors have been protesting continuously since June 8. They are staging a sit-in at the main gate of the Morang District Administration Office, demanding strict action against the meter lenders and the return of the grabbed land.

Based on the suicide abetment case filed by the victim's family, the police have arrested Narayan Gupta and his son Aman. According to Morang Police Chief SP Kavita Katuwal, an investigation is underway after extending their remand from the Morang court on June 8.

Sundari Devi has been released on bail due to her health condition. However, the police stated that she will also be made a defendant. Assistant Chief District Officer Saroj Koirala of the Morang District Administration Office said that they could not do anything because the District Court Morang and the High Court Biratnagar had ruled in favor of the meter lender Sundari Gupta.

Activists for meter interest victims have demanded that the guilty Gupta family be punished, Shanti Devi's land be returned, and compensation be provided to meet the basic needs of her daughters.

Avadhesh Kushwaha, central president of the Farmers' Laborers' Movement Campaign against Meter Interest, said that Shanti Devi lost her life because the District Administration Office did not investigate the application in time. He emphasized that victims need to put pressure to get justice, even though the government has changed.